Pastor Stan Mons
Sermon Transcription:
You can ask every single person on this stage; none of them will say, "Well, I expected God to do it." I came to a point in my journey, in my life, in my Christian walk, and I expect that now God is going to do the impossible. And He did. God always shows up at the point where you least deserve it, and you finally no longer expect Him to show up because of who you are or because of what you've done. It’s called coming to the end of yourself—when you have no more reasons as to why God may hear your cry or hear your prayer. He says, "That's where I'm going to show up because of Christ." And for the rest of your life, you will know that I will always show up in your life because of Christ, no matter what you do or no matter what you fail to do. Because He has loved you with an everlasting love.
We're going to get into a word that the Lord has given me. Very similar to last week, I cannot help you see this. I cannot really teach you this. This is something the Holy Spirit has to reveal to the heart. It’s a miracle moment that has to take place in order for us to be able to see something that the Holy Spirit reveals. That means it is covered, as if it were with a blanket. The Word of God calls it a veil, and it’s covered. No one takes that veil away but the Spirit of Christ.
When we come to the end of ourselves and we put all of our trust in Jesus, that's what the Holy Spirit does. He takes that veil away so that now we can see something we could never see before. Now we can see, if you will call them, the secrets of Heaven that are true for your life. Now we can see them, and that's where real worship is born. That's where our hands have to come up, that's where a clap comes out, that's where a shout of glory is born—when the Holy Spirit shows us what Jesus has actually done for my today. When I least deserved it, and I really know I did not earn it—I earned the opposite. I earned rejection. Yet what I received from God I cannot even explain to you; the Holy Spirit has to show you.
The title is this: "How Much More Now?" By the time this word today comes to an end, and it has finished coming forth, it is my prayer that a miracle will have taken place in your life—just right here, right now. For you online, in the next 30 minutes to an hour, that a miracle in that time frame takes place in your life. When there's any discouragement at all that has been birthed in your spirit, you have a hard time expecting or believing that when you come to a service or you tune in online, a miracle is going to take place. And I'll never be the same 30 minutes to an hour from now, because I sit under the Word of God.
When the creative Word of God comes forth, things become new, old things pass away, and the God who, by words, formed all things around us, still by words brings about new things in our hearts today. When discouragement has come in, we kind of stop believing and expecting that "this is what is going to happen to me right here, right now." If that is you in any way, shape, or form, God has given a word just for you: How much more now? I pray that by an act of God, you may be brought today into Revelation 12:11. Let me read it to you before we pray:"And they"—that’s you—"and they overcame him," that is the devil, "by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb."
Lord, we come before You today, and Father, I know what You've shown to my heart, but I know that only You can reveal it to all of our hearts. Holy Spirit, You take the Word and make it come alive to our minds, to our understanding, and to the very core of who we are—that our soul, that our entire being, may be touched and changed by the Word of Heaven, by what God has done through His Son, the King of all kings, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is worthy to be praised.
Lord God, would You send forth Your Spirit as I simply speak what You've placed on my heart? Would You send forth Your Spirit on every person that is with us online, and would You do a miracle in this time in their heart, causing them to see and understand something that gives birth to something divine, something of Heaven—that a miracle may take place? Father, in person, right here in this room, I pray that miracles may take place right here and right now—things only Your Spirit could have done. Father, I pray that we would have a heart that is willing for You to make any change You desire. Open our eyes to see, Lord God. Father, I pray that Your will may be done in every single one of our lives. In the name of Jesus, we pray and we trust that You will make it so. In Jesus' name, amen.
Thank you, worship team. Thank you, Lord, for leading us into worship in this place.
How much more now? Let me read to you Revelation 12:9-12: "So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, ‘Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.’"
Here we have the account of the moment in time where Satan was no longer allowed to accuse you and me before God in heaven. Up until that moment, Satan was allowed to come in and out as he pleased, and he would stand before the Father at times and accuse every person made in the image of God. He would accuse every person who had ever sought God or rejected God. He’d accuse them all. He would accuse before God the man or woman who had sinned, reciting the sins they had committed, and declare before the Father that He has no longer any relationship with them. "You can’t bring them home—they’ve sinned. You can’t be in fellowship with them—they’ve sinned. You can’t bring them to this Heaven. You can’t rescue them from my touch—they have sinned. They no longer belong to You. They are no longer clean. They are no longer really made in Your likeness—they are now a lot more like me. They lie, they cheat, they steal, they destroy, they deceive."
But something changed in heaven to such an extent that in heaven, the devil can no longer accuse those that are called of God, those that are made in His likeness, those that love Him, and even those that hate Him. No person can ever again be accused by the devil in heaven because the Lamb of God has come home—and He has come home as a Lamb. John says in Revelation, "Behold, I saw Him as a Lamb slain." In other words, there’s an ever-ongoing presentation of sacrifice before the Father in Heaven. There’s not a sin that can be recorded because the sacrifice is ever-present. He’s alive, not dead—He’s alive, yet John saw Him in heaven alive as a Lamb slain, an everlasting sacrifice before the Father. No room for any accusation. Yet the Word tells us that for a time, the accuser of the brethren has been cast to the earth, and the Word tells us, "Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down to you!" Now, he was here, doing the accusing here, making sure the Father knew that people were guilty of sin and death. Something so dramatically changed in heaven that now he has been downgraded to do that on the earth. But he’s come down, and woe to you, because he knows he has a short time.
The accuser of the brethren has been cast to the earth, enraged because he knows he only has a little bit of time. He goes around now, not accusing before the Father, but accusing people. Whispering into their hearts and into their minds those things he used to recite before the Father, to bother the Father, to hurt Him, to mark and put exclamation points around the reality that now there’s a chasm, a distance, a separation between God and the people He so loves. Now, he brings all those accusations—the memories, the realities, the facts of all the things you and I have done wrong—he brings them to remembrance before you. He now comes to you to accuse. He now comes to you to make you aware of sin. He now comes to you to make you aware of the fact that there’s reason in your life to be separated from the Father. He is not allowed to do it before the Father anymore, but now he tries to do it, and he will do it, before you and in your life. He seeks to convince you that there’s reason for you to not be close to God. He accuses you of things, and the message is: You are guilty. And therefore, there is a separation between you and God. There is a problem between you and God. There is reason for you to somehow work hard at all of these issues in your life. The accuser of the brethren comes to sow guilt and accuse you of sin. He used to do it before God; now he does it before people.
You may call to mind a scripture that says the Holy Spirit comes to convict the world of sin. "Pastor, what is the difference? When do I know the Holy Spirit is convicting me of sin? And I don’t want to quiet the voice of the Holy Spirit. I don’t just want to put to silence the voice of the Holy Spirit. I don’t want to brainwash myself into believing that I do no wrong and that there's just no problem. What if there is a problem and I’m deceived? How do I know the difference between when I’m being accused or, honestly, I did these things and should feel them? I should go through it. Am I being convicted by the Holy Spirit?" What is the difference between accusation—which is what the enemy of your soul does—and conviction, which is what the Holy Spirit does?
Accusation comes forth to charge you. That’s the purpose of accusation—someone is seeking to charge you with an offense. The accuser is always against you. The accusation coming forth is to charge you with something, to hold you responsible for what you’ve done. Conviction, on the other hand, is to convince you—very, very different. Accusation is to charge you so that something may be done to you, so that you may have and carry all the consequences of what you’ve done wrong—you deserve them. Conviction is to convince you of something so that in the future you make different decisions. Conviction never wants you to have the consequences. Conviction never wants you to remember the wrong. Conviction wants you to see that there’s another way. Conviction wants you to understand, "I have a plan for your life. I’m trying to help you understand because you’re missing the plan right now. You’re missing my direction for your life right now. I’m trying to help you see that this is not good for you. It is not good for other people. Would you let me help you into a different way?" Accusation doesn’t care about your future. Accusation only cares about your past and what you’ve done. The accuser is against you and wants to charge you.
Within the Kingdom of God, within the people of God, there are people that used to be encouraged in God, but because the accuser now runs around—knowing he has such a short time to do his work, such a short time before the Lord comes back, such a short time to work in your life—he works hard. It's not only because he knows the Lord is coming back. Before the flood, people used to live way longer, and now life has been cut down for us. It’s normal for us, but for the enemy, it’s a way shorter lifespan, if you will, of time to influence you on earth. He knows he has a very short time to get to you, whichever way you turn it. The Lord coming back is a problem for him. You only being alive for maybe a hundred years is a problem for him. He needs to get to work; he needs to get to you before he runs out of time to have influence over your life. He is enraged with his situation—he's already lost. His accusation cannot stand before the truth. It cannot stand before the Lord. All he seeks to do is weaken you in trusting the God who has actually told you the truth by lying and accusing you, even though God has already told him: "It will not stand. It will not stand ever in my presence."
But there are people that used to be encouraged in God, and now they are discouraged in Satan. How do you know the difference? Being discouraged doesn’t mean being depressed. It doesn’t mean you’re negative. It doesn’t mean you’re not having fun. You can be happy, content, full of joy, and still be discouraged. To be encouraged in God means that you are constantly seeing yourself—you may not really be able to explain it, but it’s happening, and it’s clear. You’re constantly taking steps forward with the Lord. He’s taking you from glory to glory. Things are changing. Your calling is growing. Your journey in the Kingdom is growing. Your journey in the world is declining. You can’t fully explain it, but that’s what it looks like. When you see someone who’s encouraged in God, they’re just taking little steps of faith, but every year, there’s a significant difference that you can see in their life. The earth is declining; Heaven is growing in their life.
A person who is discouraged has stopped or slowed down in taking steps into their call, steps forward with their Lord, steps deeper in their relationship, steps forward in what they believe God is able to change and deliver them from. They are discouraged in God. They may be very encouraged in this world. They may look happy and content. They may look like everything is going well. But you can tell if someone is discouraged in God when they have stopped moving forward in their call and in their heavenly journey with Christ—the ever-increasing journey with Christ from glory to glory, being changed. It’s not from mediocre to mediocre; it’s from glory to glory. Heaven uses big words to describe what the lives of those who have believed in the only begotten Son of God will look like. But many people, because this mean, death-seeking accuser goes around, fall prey to his accusations.
Those that used to be spoken in the presence of the Father are now whispered to your heart and mind in ways he knows how to do it. Church, he knows that you know how to pray. He knows that you know the phone number of your pastor. He knows all these things, so he seeks to accuse you in ways that you don't realize it's him, or else, God forbid, you may do something about it. He whispers. He tries to make you believe certain thoughts are yours. He tries to reason you through it and have it all make sense to you until you come to a place where you realize, I am discouraged in God. I'm not moving deeper into my call. I'm not laying down more of the world and growing more in Heaven. It's kind of the other way around. I'm laying aside some of the Heavenly things that I used to believe for, grow in, and be excited about. That excitement has transferred to some of the things in the world.
I'm still an excited person, but it has just shifted a little. I'm not here to tell you you're living your life wrong. I'm not here to tell you that you've made grave mistakes. I'm telling you there's an accuser, and he goes around to bring you to a place where you once were so encouraged in God, and you did not do much, but everything was just happening. He seeks to rob you of that.
How much more now, I want to come with you to the word of the Lord, because the word of God has the power to make the accuser and the accusations go away in a very simple and swift way. That is what I so love about my Lord—there's never really a problem in the presence of Jesus, there are just opportunities. Amen? Amen.
Let me read to you the story of the woman caught in adultery. Oh, she’s in trouble. John 8:3-11. Starting at verse 3: "Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him (that is, Jesus) a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, 'Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act.' Very important point: this is not a person that got convicted and is seeking to change their ways. This is not a person that feels bad about what they were doing in their life and so they're seeking to make a change. This person was caught right in the act—wasn't trying to turn away from sin, wasn’t trying to change their life. They were living it up while they were called to be a part of the people of God. They were just doing what they wanted to do, and they got caught." They said to Him, verse 4: "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commands us that such should be stoned. What do You say?" This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger as though He did not hear. So, when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them: "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first."
And again, He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her:"Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?" She said:"No one, Lord." And Jesus said to her: "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more." Here we see Jesus speak a word in the presence of accusers. And the accusers—they got the long end of the rope. They caught her in the act, they got all the facts right, and the law is on their side. By every account, this woman—justice is going to be done. This one cannot be robbed from us. This one cannot escape justice—caught in the act, and now we're bringing her to a Bible teacher who knows the law. There is no way, no wiggle room. Jesus speaks one word in a situation where all the accusation seems reasonable. He speaks one word, and the accuser and the accusation just disappear.
It is my prayer for every person online and right here in person that you may hear the words of the Spirit of God in your mind and in your heart today, that the accusation—and also the accuser—can no longer work in your heart, can no longer work in your mind. That there would not be room for the accuser to stay in your life, just like in this story. This woman received one simple word from Jesus, one simple word that she let come into her heart and into her life, and all of a sudden, no one could accuse her—even though she was wrong. All of a sudden, the accusers could not walk with her and remind her of her shame—even though she was wrong.
It is my prayer that the word of God will be taken by that same Spirit of Christ into your heart today, so that you would no longer experience the accusations, the sneaky, still, small, snake-like accusations that are being brought into your life, even though sometimes you’re wrong, even though sometimes you just did it, and you sinned. That accuser was eradicated from the Father's presence, and the Spirit of Christ seeks to eradicate that accuser from the presence of the children of the Father. Let me take you to Galatians chapter 4. We're going to let the word remind us of who we are. Galatians 4:4-7: "But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons."
Here the word tells us that this Jesus, whom this woman met, was sent forth by the Father into your and my life, into our world. He was sent forth under the law. That means the old covenant—the covenant that Moses made with God on behalf of the people of Israel. The covenant that says, "If you do, then God will respond. If you don't, then you keep the favor of God." It is a covenant of dos and don’ts, a covenant that accuses us. The word says no one has ever been justified by the law. The law accuses every person that comes under it. The law brings about the realization of sin. Without the law, we could not understand what sin really is and that we, too, have partaken of sin. The word tells us that Jesus was given unto us, born under that law, to redeem—meaning to buy back, to buy free—those who were under the law.
Those that were walking under that accusation, those that were walking guilty of all the things they could not do well enough—when they come face to face with that law, He came to redeem those so that we may receive something else. This is incredible if you think about it, church: an incredible exchange. People that hate God, enemies of God, love sin. We come face to face with God's standard, God's law, and we realize, "Well, I'm not making it." Then Jesus is sent under that law to redeem, to buy free, every single person that couldn't live up to that law. Instead, He takes one thing away and gives us adoption as sons. He takes us from one place and brings us fully into a new place. Verse six says, "And because you are sons"—that’s who you are—"God has done this." That’s who you are. Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, "Abba, Father." That means Papa, the most personal, endearing, and close name a child gives his father. That’s the name the Holy Spirit begins to teach to our hearts. This is who the Father has become to you; this is who you are to Him. This is what Christ has done. This is what He came to do. He came to take you from the place of accusation and bring you into a place where you would begin to understand who you are to the Father.
The accuser tries to tell you that you're somebody else to the Father. The accuser tries to tell you that what you can expect from Him is merely being a slave to the law: try to be better, and maybe God will listen; try to be better, and maybe God will save you, maybe He will respond to you; work harder. But the Spirit of God comes to show to your heart that all of these things have been taken away from you by Christ. What you have been given is to be a child in the kingdom of God, a child in heaven. To redeem means to buy free, and He bought you free so that you may receive adoption as sons. Verse seven says, "Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ." Church, you are an heir of God. I try to explain this to give Him glory—amen, amen, thank You, Lord. I try to explain this to my children sometimes, the concept of being an heir. I’ll walk through the garage. I build remote-controlled cars. I'll walk through the garage with my son and show them all to him, and I'll tell him, "Listen, these are all yours; they're all going to be yours. Everything that is Papa's and Mama’s is all going to be you guys's. We’re just trying to take good care of it, and it will all be yours." And it just—wow—so much, way too much. "What am I going to do with all these things?" It blows their mind.
But that is what the Father is trying to help you see: that you are an heir of God. All of the peace of God is going to be yours. All of the resources of God, they belong to you. All of the joy of God, it is available for you. All of the love of God, it is available for you. The home of God, it is available to you. The peace of God, it is available to you. The Spirit of God, it is available to you. You are heirs with God, heirs of God. Everything that is His, He would freely give to you. He tries to show you: "I did not even withhold my Son from you. How will I not freely give you all things—all things for you?" Not as a theological concept, not as something we preach at Safe House Church—to you personally, to you who struggle with sin, you who feel like maybe not coming to church, you who feel like giving up in so many ways, in so many areas, you who yell at your husband, or you who yell at your wife, or you who stop praying.
How much more now is God going to speak to you, that you are under attack by the accuser that he knows so well? How much more now is He going to reach into your heart, speak to you, even though you don’t deserve it? How much more now is He going to touch your life? You are an heir with God; you are an heir of God. That’s who you are. Do you believe that? This is what Jesus has done. He made you—not your neighbor, well, your neighbor too—but think for yourself for a moment. He made you an heir of God. That means there is no limit to what you may receive, even in this world, from your Father. Are you living like that? Do you pray like it? Do you worship like it? Do you enjoy your Monday like it? Do you enjoy your time off like it? Do you read your Bible like it—this Word belongs to my Father, and He’s going to give it to me, He’s going to reveal it to me, He’s going to show it to me? I’m an heir with God. Do you see who you are in Christ Jesus?
Romans 5:1-5 says, "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." And not only that—in other words, you thought that was good—but not only that, we also glory in tribulations. Whoa, Paul, what? What are you talking about? He’s talking about what we received last week from the Word. This is a miracle that happens in the lives of those that are redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ and brought into sonship in the kingdom. Every time tribulation hits, meaning trouble, every time difficulty hits, every time life falls apart, every time difficulty is brought upon your mind or your heart or your situation, every time, the children of the Lord get excited. They become boastful. They don’t panic. They don’t get frustrated. They’re not fearful. They just light up when trouble hits. What is this? What are you talking about?
Not only that, but we also glory—that word means boast—we boast in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance, perseverance character, and character hope. Now hope does not disappoint. In other words, I’ve got all kinds of trouble in my life, but I’m never disappointed. Disappointment never touches my life because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, who was given to us. By the way, God gave His Spirit away to me. By the way, why can you speak like this? How can you speak like this? We’re sinners, yet we have peace with God Almighty. We boast when everything goes wrong. We get excited. We glow. We light up. We never end up disappointed. And God gave His Spirit away to me. How can we speak like this? Why can we say these things?
He explains it in verse six: "For when we were still without strength, when we had no ability to change, when we did not worship, when we did not think of God—not a minute of the day." I remember what that was like, church. I don’t know if you remember this, but I remember this with a smile because of the contrast of what God just did to me. I didn’t do anything for it. I remember what it was like to remember God. I remember sitting at the end of my bed—I have no idea how old I was—and I remember remembering God and being terrified. I would remember God and realize how long I had not even thought of Him. He hadn’t been a thought in my mind. Eternity hadn’t been a thought in my mind. Hell or Heaven hadn’t been a thought in my mind. Prayer hadn’t been a thought in my mind. I was raised in church; I knew things about God, but I would have those moments where I would remember Him and realize I had forgotten Him.
Then, when Jesus came, when I came to the end of myself and Jesus spoke the Word, even if I would try, I could never forget Him. He bothers me, harasses me, wakes me up in the morning with His presence there. He gets in my way until I acknowledge Him. He loves on us; He keeps our attention. When we don’t want to pray, we still can’t forget Him. When we don’t want to read, we can’t forget the Scriptures. When we don’t want to sing, we can’t help but hum in the car. The Lord is treating us as His children. He’s not harsh with you; He’s not mean with you. But you can’t get away anymore from who you are. You can’t get away anymore from what He has done and how He has purchased you.
Verse six again: "For when we were still without strength, couldn’t even remember God, and when I did, I was afraid, in due time, in the right time—some translations say 'at the right time,' the time I needed saving—Christ died for the ungodly." Not the repentant of heart, not those seeking God, not those that were in trouble, but for the ungodly—those that are altogether different from what God is like: the unmerciful, the untruthful, the liar, the cheater, the mean person, the person that curses God. He died for the ungodly. That’s the why and the how. That’s why and how people who do not deserve a thing from Heaven can stand up and say, "I have peace with God. I never get disappointed. When I get in trouble, I get excited because my God always shows up in the midst of it, and He has given me His Spirit for free. I never did a thing for it."
That’s why undeserving people can claim all of these things: because at the most unlikely moment, when you and I were at our worst and at our weakest, that is when Christ died for those who were altogether different from God. And then Paul gives this incredible example.
He gives us a very short, one-verse story—it could be the plot of a good movie. Verse seven: "For scarcely for a righteous man will one die, yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die." Here's the movie plot: there’s a hero who can save the city, but he gets himself in trouble. Somehow, the enemy seems to overrule and overpower him. Then there’s another person—they cannot save the city, but they can make a difference by dying in the hero’s place, giving the hero another chance to save the city. A tear comes to your cheek as this person decides to give their life for the hero. That’s the picture Paul is painting.
In other words, Paul was speaking to that time and congregation, and then he brings in a sharp contrast for our reality. He sets the stage with that example and then says, "Now, I’m going to talk about what is real for your life." But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. In other words, God is completely different. He doesn’t give His life when it seems to matter. He gives His life when no one notices, when it seemingly does not matter. No one thanks Him, and it doesn’t seem to make a great difference. He gave His life when you still had it in your heart to reject Him, to never thank Him or call out to Him. He gave His life so that you could become a person that bears hope. He gave His life so that you would have a second chance—not the hero, not the great person, not the magnificent person, not the one who seeks God or is strong and always keeps the Father’s commands. No, He gave His life to give you that second chance and that new life in the power of Christ and His Spirit. Verse nine: "Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved by His life? How much more, church?
So many struggle with sin and come to a place where they realize, "I’m spiritually discouraged. I’m not growing in the heavenly things. I’m not excited about prayer anymore. I’m not excited about the Word anymore. I don’t expect to be treated as an heir of God, where the heavens open the moment I open this Word. I don’t expect it anymore. I’m not excited anymore. I don’t believe anymore that the moment my knees hit the floor, all of Heaven opens, messengers are sent, things are changed the moment I speak to my Lord. That spark, that joy, that touch of Heaven—it seems to be gone. I’ve become discouraged. I still have fun, I still have a happy life, everything seems to be going fine, but something is missing. Some encouragement in God that I would never be able to explain—it was there. It’s been robbed by the one who comes to rob, kill, and destroy."
You are not a disappointment to God. You have not turned against Him. You are not a failure to Him, even though the enemy has you by the throat—just like with that woman caught in adultery. The law says one thing about your situation, bringing you before God, accusing you, speaking into your heart, telling you what you can expect in His presence. "He wrote this Word," you think. "Surely, He knows you’ve been disobeying it. Surely, He knows you’ve been reading it. Surely, He knows you don’t trust in it. Surely, He knows you still struggle with fear." He knows all of these things, yet the Spirit of God is crying out: "How much more?" There was a time when you wouldn’t even remember God. There was a time when you loved sin, hid it, and had no conscience about it. There was a time you wouldn’t attend church. There was a time you wouldn’t encourage a person. There was a time you didn’t care about people’s feelings. Then you met Christ. Yes, the journey got hard. Yes, you made a lot of mistakes. But the Spirit cries out: "How much more now?"
When you were an enemy, He died for you and rescued you. How much more now will you be saved? How much more now will the favor of God remain on your situation? How much more now will you be able to expect His blessings everywhere you turn? In your disobedience, you will find the blessings of the Lord. In your provoking of Him, turning against Him, and growing lukewarm toward Him, He will send His Spirit and begin to do the work. He will begin to draw you home. You won’t have to do the work because you are the Beloved of the Lord. How much more now will He reveal His love? How much more now will He present His patience to the enemy through you? How much more now will He awaken you and stir you up one more time so that this generation would have a people excited about their Lord, believing that God will do all He has promised? How much more now, compared to when Jesus first found you, and you didn’t even believe Him yet? You weren’t sure if He was real. Now you are bothered by how real He is. How much more now are you going to be just fine? How much more now are you approved? How much more now can you expect Him to show up the moment you turn to prayer?
Let me tell you how my vacation went, church. I had these grand ideas—I get them from time to time—about how I was going to seek the Lord during my vacation and receive so many grand revelations from Him. But I had the hardest time getting into my Word. I had the hardest time taking time to pray. It would be barely a conversation between the bedroom and getting outside, if that. I felt heavy under it. I was so spiritually tired and mentally tired that for a few days, I could kind of explain it away. But then the accuser started to come and show up. I began to feel like a failure. The Holy Spirit would come and encourage me, but still, I wouldn’t really come. I wouldn’t really seek Him. I wouldn’t read that much. Then, one day, I went into our little bedroom, and I was going to finally wait on the Lord.
I had finally set my heart, and I went in there to wait on the Lord. Before I sat down on the bed, the Lord said, "I’ve been waiting for you. I’ve been waiting for you all this time. I always wait for you. I love you. You don’t have to find your way back to me. You won’t have to make up for all the things that you’re being accused of. You did wrong; I was waiting for you. You will never have to wait for me. I will always be with you. I will always love you. I will always take you in."
How much more now will He be a father to you and draw you in? How much more now?
1 Timothy 6:12-13—Paul says this: "Fight the good fight of the faith, lay hold of eternal life to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all things and before Christ Jesus, who witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate."
He tells Timothy, who was a pastor, to "fight the good fight." Church, are you fighting? I know I have to be fighting, but if Timothy had to be fighting, surely you have to be fighting. Are you fighting for your faith just in your personal journey with the Lord? I’m not asking if you are fighting to be the most-read, most-studied Christian ever to be alive. I’m not asking if you are fighting to have the most impressive prayer life that you can share about and impress people. I’m asking: Are you fighting for your faith? Are you fighting to believe every day? Are you making it a point to let the Spirit draw you to the place where you realize that the Lord was waiting for you and that you’re invited to believe? He was waiting for me. He loves me. He will always take the first step. He will never leave me nor forsake me. Do I let the Holy Spirit teach me these things? Am I fighting for my faith? In other words, I’ve walked with Him for a while. Not only did things get hard, but I made so many mistakes, ran to sin, and the Holy Spirit cries out, "How much more now? How much more now will I love you? How much more now are you approved?"
Paul says, "Maintain that good confession, Timothy, that you have displayed before so many." Then he reminds him, "By the way, Jesus also held that good confession before Pontius Pilate." Let’s look at what he is talking about. Luke 23:2-3 describes Jesus: "And they began to accuse Him, saying, 'We found this fellow perverting the nation and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ, a King.' Then Pilate asked Him, saying, 'Are you the King of the Jews?' He answered him and said, 'It is as you say.'" That’s all that the Lord Jesus said. All the other accusations, every other thing that came, He became quiet. He did not say a thing; He did not defend Himself. But when it came to bearing witness to the Christ of the Living God, sent from Heaven for the redemption of all people, Christ Jesus said, "It is as you say." Timothy has done the same thing. "Lord, it is as you have said. The Christ has come. It is as you have said; I am forgiven. It is as you have said; I am highly favored. It is as you have said: when I was still a sinner, you already purchased my forgiveness."
How much more now am I favored? How much more now can I expect your touch, your Spirit, and your love? The Jews accused Jesus of saying that the Christ had come. They accused Him before Pilate, saying, "This fellow"—we would say today, "this dude"—they were disrespecting Him. "This dude is saying that all hostility between God and man has ended! Can you believe it, Pilate? He claims that it's all over! He claims that all sins will be paid for forever! This man, this dude, has a problem with grandeur! He believes he says that God has intervened on our behalf, sinners! God has intervened on our behalf, and He has brought our case to a close! Pilate, he says he's the Christ! He says that God has finally done the miracle of all miracles for all mankind! Can you do something with this guy? Get rid of him! Do something with him!"
This is still the voice of the accusers in your life. Do you really believe all hostility between you and God is forever closed? No matter what you do, no matter what you fail in, do you really believe that, because of this Jesus, it’s over? That because of this Jesus, every sin you will ever commit from now to eternity will be covered? You believe that? That God would decide to intervene on your behalf? You really believe that?
Pilate responds to Jesus, asking, "Are you the Christ? Are you the King of the Jews?" That is the question that rises in your and my heart when we come face to face with our Lord. Yet the overwhelming voice of the accuser is so real in our lives. We’re not sure anymore: Are you still the reason that I’m fully accepted? Are you still the reason? Am I going to hear from God when I pray? Am I going to be changed if I go to church and sit under the Word of God? Am I going to receive from you if I choose to lift my hands in surrender in worship? Is something actually going to happen? The accusing voice goes around; he knows he has very little time. The Spirit of God is crying out to our hearts, "How much more now? You’ve come so far since I found you. You’ve come so far since the Spirit of God found you, since you first believed, since He first opened your eyes. How much more now are you not a failure to God? How much more now has He been waiting on you? How much more now can you expect Him to speak to you once again? How much more now?" And come to a place one more time and say, "It is as you say." That’s all Jesus did; He bore witness to the truth. That’s what Timothy did; he bore witness to the truth. The truth has a name: it is the Christ of Heaven. It is as you say.
Fight the good fight of the faith, church. I say this very carefully—hear me on this: you do not have to fight sin. All you’ve ever proved is that you lose that fight. You need to fight the good fight of the faith. Jesus will send His Spirit; He will woo you away from things, and He will get the glory. He will pour out His Spirit more and more upon your mind. He will cleanse it and wash it. He will draw you into the Word of God; it will mature you, and things will just begin to fall off of you. You will never, never, ever need to fight your own sin. Christ and His Spirit will do that for you, but you need to fight the good fight of the faith. Are you still believing that you are the highest favored person that has ever lived before the throne of the Living God? Because that is what the Spirit seeks to make you understand: Abba, Father!
How much more now? "And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony." To those who are with us online and here in the church, how much more now? How much more now will God move upon your heart, on your mind, and on your life? For some of you, the accusation has become real to you, and it has actually changed how you expect life to turn out. It has changed how you expect God to respond to you. There was a time when every time the Lord was on your mind, you were full of joy. Now you're cautious; now you're unsure what to expect. Every time tribulation or difficulty hit, you got excited because you knew God was about to do something, and you would have to do nothing. And today, you find yourself wrestling with your situations again, trying to get life under control. The accusation has become real to you. You may not know even exactly what it is, but it’s there. Today, the Holy Spirit is seeking to convince you.
-Pastor Stan Mons
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